What do I say? “As it Was” To be honest, Harry Styles blew my mind but what also warmed me to the depth of my heart was seeing my grand-children so into it. Slane is, of course, about its legacy but it is also about the future and when I set out all those years ago, in the dark days of 1981 to run the first show, it was my lofty ambition for the concerts to attain a central place in our annual calendar.
U2 played support to the legendary Thin Lizzie at that first ground-breaking show and it was wonderful to see Bono and Ali Hewson enjoy seeing their son Elijah’s band Inhaler perform so well in front of such an enthusiastic crowd. There is something almost mystical about Slane and Harry absorbed that magic and projected it onto the crowd. Even those that wondered at my choice had to marvel at such a stellar performance. People often ask me what concert was the greatest – well Harry is right up there. He had the audience in the palm of his hand. He showed humour but he also displayed a heartfelt gratitude towards his audience. He said Thank You many times but I want to say Thank You to him for living up to every expectation I had of him and going way beyond.
Such strange times we do live in but it induces the oddest of images in the mind’s eye. A capacity Slane crowd of 80,000 is the same as the number of Ukrainian refugees that this country has absorbed since the beginning of the war. I can’t get that out of my head. Putin is a despicable, immoral war criminal, so what of the war? On Monday we got the news that Major General Sergei Goryachev, one of Russia’s “most efficient military leaders” was killed in a Ukrainian military strike, most likely with a Storm Shadow supplied by the British. Vlad the Bad has admitted to the loss of 54 tanks. Ukraine is making progress but it is slow and grindingly bloody. The Russians are putting up fierce resistance and they are well dug in. The hope is that the Ukrainians can make a break-through and then be in a position to make a push for the Crimea. However, this may be a long and bloody process. The future of Europe is at stake. This week may well see the end of the political career of Boris Johnston. He may have brought it on himself but for one thing we should be grateful. He stood four-square behind President Zelensky as he faced the tyranny of Vlad the Bad. His stance helped persuade the French and the Germans to step up to the plate. In that respect the history books will be kind.
Now to America and the continuing saga of Donald Trump. Is it really possible that the United States could elect a President who was serving time in prison? The mind boggles. So much for the country which has driven humanity to its greatest achievements. However, we do not need a lunatic in the White House.